Unlock Kamen Riders in Douluo's Way Ch 58

Kamen Rider Wizard, one of the few Riders in the Kamen Rider series wielding magical abilities, stood as a beacon of hope against despair in his world.

Phantoms, born from human despair, consumed their hosts, replacing them entirely. These were the first life forms with magical power. To defeat them, one needed magic, to become a magician.

Magicians were humans wielding magic, their power drawn from Phantoms. There were two ways to gain this power.

The first, the way of ancient magicians, involved signing a contract with a Phantom, gaining power in the early stages but facing challenges later. The host had to constantly defeat other Phantoms for their inner Phantom to devour, risking being consumed if they failed.

The second path, though without the risk of being consumed by the phantom, had a higher chance of failure. By intentionally falling into despair, a Phantom would be born within. Only by conquering this despair could one claim the Phantom, thus gaining magic. However, the risk of being devoured was very high.

Azure Phoenix King’s Negative Heart Flame ignited negative emotions within a person's inner world, akin to the ritual of generating despair. It forced them to confront their deepest fears. Under its influence, Yin Xiaoya had witnessed his most painful memories and nearly succumbed to despair.

Fortunately, at the last moment, he realized that the source of his despair was also the source of his hope, allowing him to triumph.

Logically, in Douluo World, despair wouldn't birth a Phantom, and defeating it wouldn't grant magic, let alone the powers of a magic-wielding Rider.

But fate, as it often did, had other plans. Under the system's modifications, Yin Xiaoya could unlock Rider powers through Douluo World's soul beasts, including the Phantom, the source of the magic Rider's abilities.

Initially, the system planned for Yin Xiaoya to find a soul beast to unlock the sealed Dragon Phantom, which would then unlock the basic four-elemental forms of Wizard and grant the corresponding transformation rings. Stronger forms would be unlocked later with stronger soul beasts.

However, the system hadn't anticipated Yin Xiaoya succumbing to despair under a soul beast's power, an opportunity it couldn't miss.

The moment Yin Xiaoya conquered despair, the system thrust the sealed Wizard power, the Dragon Phantom, into Yin Xiaoya's inner world, integrating it with the Negative Heart Flame. This fueled the Dragon Phantom's unlocking process.

Since it wasn't a complete unlocking through a soul beast, the process would take time. Even when unlocked, it wouldn't possess independent intelligence or unlock the form rings needed for Wizard's basic forms. But it was enough to unlock the Wizardriver.

Aside from transformation rings, auxiliary rings like those for spatial storage, giants, avatars, magic chains, traps, body softening, and cross-dressing weren't Rider-exclusive. Yin Xiaoya could exchange points for these powerful rings directly.

More importantly, with his own magic power, Yin Xiaoya wouldn't need to unlock these rings a second time for personal use.

The "second unlocking," as exemplified by the Dolphi Ring and Teleportation Ring, required a cooldown period for each use without it. Unlocking them a second time through soul beasts would eliminate the cooldown and allow soul masters to use them as well.

Yin Xiaoya had initially planned to visit Baimu Trench with Su Xuan to find a soul beast to fully unlock the Dolphi Ring, allowing anyone to use it without magic or soul power. But that was no longer necessary, as Yin Xiaoya could now power it with his magic.

Watching the Dragon Shadow gradually unlock within the raging Azure Flames, Yin Xiaoya turned his gaze away. The figure of "Yin Xiaoman" stood there, smiling.

"Did you specifically show me the time-travel scene?"

[Seeing what really happened was the best way to dilute the despair.]

Yin Xiaoya's triumph over despair was, in fact, aided by the system's intervention, showing him the truth.

"It really happened…" Yin Xiaoya said softly, a slight smile gracing his face. "So, you really appeared in her prayer? No wonder you had to appear in my posture as her again before."

[Strictly speaking, it was inspired. This system has been searching for suitable candidates in countless parallel worlds. Fate brought us together. Unfortunately, something went wrong during the time travel, causing you to enter Douluo World by mistake.]

Yin Xiaoya shook his head, no longer caring about the time travel mishap. He gazed at the system, in the image of his sister, resisting the urge to touch her face.

"My hope is with you, right?"

The system nodded, clasping her hands, a shimmering Kuuga doll floating between them. She asked, a hint of amusement in her voice,

[Really, giving a girl this kind of thing for her birthday? No wonder you're considered a straight man.]

"You even know that?"

[That's right. When this system was inspired to integrate, it absorbed some of your sister's memories.]

This was embarrassing. Would she know all his embarrassing moments from his past life? Her expression suggested so.

"Speaking of which, I've been calling you System since I arrived in Douluo. I never thought to give you a name. If you don't mind, I'll use my sister's name, Xiaoman."

Her eyes widened, her voice full of cheer. [Really? Then I'm not welcome!]

Seeing her happiness, Yin Xiaoya felt a genuine connection to his sister.

"Xiaoman, I have to go. I need to get back to the real world; those two big birds are probably freaking out."

Indeed, just as Azure Phoenix King thought Yin Xiaoya hadn't survived and was about to intervene, something unexpected happened.

It suddenly lost contact with the Negative Heart Flame it had planted in Yin Xiaoya. Furthermore, Yin Xiaoya's body emitted a golden light that not only repaired the cracks but also formed a golden magic circle. Within the circle, a dragon shadow flickered, its roar making both Azure Phoenix King and the Ghost-Faced Griffin King uneasy.

The magic circle shrank, merging into his waist, where a flat, palm-shaped belt appeared. Yin Xiaoya returned to normal, standing slowly.

"You… you withstood the Negative Heart Flame?"

Even though it was what it wanted to see, Azure Phoenix King was surprised.

The Ghost-Faced Griffin King said optimistically, "Little human, congratulations! You survived this bird's trial! It said that as long as you survived, you'd get its blessing. Don't be polite!"

Azure Phoenix King looked at Yin Xiaoya, surprised. "No, what did you do to the negative energy? Why can't I reclaim it?"

Yin Xiaoya retorted, "That thing's mine now! Of course, you can't have it back! What? You're upset that I took your torture device? How dare you try to reclaim it?"

The stunned Azure Phoenix King, didn't react angrily this time. It simply stared at the seemingly insignificant human.

"Heh, human boy, you're truly interesting. You have many secrets. Whatever method you used, you sustained the Negative Heart Flame. This is what you deserve."

A small ray of light shone from its tail feathers, landing before Yin Xiaoya. It was a colorful feather.

"I learned about you from the Griffin. With this feather, flame-attributed soul beasts below 50,000 years old won't be hostile to you. It's not much for someone who isn't a soul master, but it should be useful."

[Discovered extreme fire attribute element items can increase the favorability of fire attribute soul beasts under 50,000 years old]

Yin Xiaoya's eyes lit up. It was a fantastic gift! For someone who needed a lot of soul power to unlock Riders, this was invaluable.

The Ghost-Faced Griffin King, seeing this, was surprised and quickly sent a telepathic message to Azure Phoenix King: "Hey! What are you doing? What about the blessing? You gave me this thing! You call this a blessing?"

Azure Phoenix King rolled its eyes, replying telepathically, "You want me as your seat? Forget it. A true blessing can be obtained naturally after surviving the Negative Heart Flame. But this human took the Negative Energy Heart Flame for himself! I can't tell if he's truly blessed. I can only placate him with this."

After Yin Xiaoya put the feather away, his dissatisfaction with Azure Phoenix King lessened.

"Now, do I have your approval?"

Azure Phoenix King nodded. "Naturally."

"Then, if there's nothing else, I'll go find the soul beast."

"Wait a minute. I have a question…" The Ghost-Faced Griffin King, told about its and Azure Phoenix King's child, "...So, I want to know if you can use your ability to change how our child exists? I think that would awaken it and save it."

Yin Xiaoya frowned, considering the request. "Change how it exists? You mean, like turn it into a Kamen Rider?"

The Ghost-Faced Griffin King nodded eagerly. "Yes! Exactly! Can you do that? It would be better than having it become someone's spirit ring."

"I can try," Yin Xiaoya said, "But I need to know more about the Azure Flame Heaven Griffin. What's its story? Why is it considered a threat?"

The Ghost-Faced Griffin King sighed. "It's a long story. My son, Cangyantian, was born with a unique mutation. His flames burn with emotion. The stronger his feelings, the more intense and destructive they become. It's a power unlike anything we've ever seen."

"But that's not all," Azure Phoenix King interjected, its voice laced with concern. "The mutation also destabilized his life force. He's constantly in pain, and his emotions are volatile. We fear he'll lose control and destroy himself, or worse, destroy us all."

"That's why you want him to become a spirit ring?" Yin Xiaoya asked, a hint of accusation in his voice. "To control his power, to prevent him from becoming a threat?"

"It was the only option we could see," the Ghost-Faced Griffin King said, its voice heavy with regret. "We couldn't bring ourselves to kill him, but we couldn't risk his power spiraling out of control. We hoped a soul master could tame him, find a way to channel his flames for good."

"But now," Azure Phoenix King added, "We see another possibility. The Kamen Riders. You've shown us that there's another way to harness power, to control it without destroying the individual. If you could turn Cangyantian into a Kamen Rider, maybe he could finally find peace, find a purpose for his flames."

Yin Xiaoya considered their words. He could sense their genuine concern for their child, their desperation for a solution. He also sensed the potential within the Azure Flame Heaven Griffin, the power that could be unleashed if it were given the right guidance.

"Alright," Yin Xiaoya said, his voice firm. "I'll do it. I'll turn Cangyantian into a Kamen Rider. But I need your help. I need you to tell me everything about him, his powers, his weaknesses, his fears. I need to understand him if I'm going to help him."

The Ghost-Faced Griffin King and Azure Phoenix King exchanged relieved glances. A spark of hope had been ignited, a chance to save their child from a tragic fate.

"Thank you," the Ghost-Faced Griffin King said, its voice filled with gratitude. "We'll tell you everything. We'll do whatever it takes to help you succeed."

"Then let's get started," Yin Xiaoya said, a determined glint in his eyes. "The sooner we start, the sooner we can save Cangyantian."

The System then pops up.

[Side Quest Available: Save Cangyantian and transform him to a Kamen Rider by using the Azure Flame Heaven Griffin's spirit core and soul beast trait. Reward: 50,000 system points, a free Rider Draw, and the trust of Ghost-Faced Griffin King and Azure Phoenix King.]